Aeroplane wing



W. WAIT, JR

ug., M, 1931.

AEROPLANE WING Filed July l, 1927 2 Sheets-heet l ug. 11, 1931. w, WAlT, JR 1,817,956

AEROPLANE WING Filed July l, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. WWU/AM WAIT Patented aus. n, tesi WLLIAM WATT, IFR.,

0F GARDEN CITY, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR 'JTOl CURTSS EROPLALNE & MOTOR COMPANY, A CORPORAJIDN OF NEW 'Y0-RK AEROPLANE WING' Application -led J'uly 1,

MyY invention relates ,to aeroplanes and is concerned more particularly with the wings or supporting surfaces and ailerons thereof.

An object of the invention is to provide,

vin combination with an aeroplane, wing nose flaps and oppositely acting ailerons, the nose iiaps (by means edge wing slots are opened and closed) 'and ailerons being so interconnected that upon deflecting either aileron downwardly to increase the lift on the low. side of the machine,

the corresponding nose flap is simultaneously moved ahead to open the wing slot, thus further increasing the wing lift, while at the opposite or high side of the machine, the opposite aileron is deflected upwardly without in any way moving its associated nose flap; the result being thata greater corrective force than heretofore is immediately set up tending to depress the high wing even at speeds as low as the stalling speed of the machine.

A further object of the invention is to so construct and mount the ailerons as to provide at the leadingr edge thereof when d eected upwardly, an open wing slot thru which the moving air is' free to pass and by means of which an even greater downward force than would ordinarily occur is exerted on the upturned aileron.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a novel form of operating mechanis-m by means of which the ailerons and nose flaps arecontrolled as aforesaid, and by means of which, if desired, the nose flaps can be extended or retracted simultaneously, the ailerons during that period of nose flap adjustment in which the wing slots are open, being Aoperable simultaneously and oppositely in the usual way.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will behereinafter set forth.

In the drawings, wherein like reference characters denote like or corresponding parts,

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a portion of an aeroplane, with a portion of the wing covering removed, showing the interconnecof which leading ,j

lift the low wing and vided, at or near said Serial No; 202,780.

tion between one of the ailerons and nose flaps; i

Fig. 2 is a plan view, partly broken away, of a corresponding portion of the aeroplane, the nose flaps, as in Fig. 3 is a perspective view of an aeroplane supporting surface showing diagrammatically the position of the ailerons and nose flaps when `it is desired that a maximum oflift be exerted on one wing and a @o minimum of lift on the other;

Fig. 4f is a similar view showing the position of the nose flaps when it is desired that maximum lift be obtained without recourse to aileron adjustment;

1n the 1embodiment of the invention selected for illustration, an aeroplane fuselage or body 10 of more or less conventional design is shown. Said fuselage 10, at or near its forward end, has formed therein a cockpit .within which a seat 11 for an operator is enclosed. Said fuselage 10 is further proforward end with a lifting or supporting surface 12. As herein 50 shown said supporting surface 12 comprises oppositely extending wings 13-13, each of which at or near its outer end, is provided with trailing edge balanced ailerons 14C-14.

As indicated in Fig. 2 the ailerons 14 are 35 each set in a wing jog 15 and in plan view are adapted to carry out the desired contour of the wings. The transverse axis about which the ailerons 14-14 are adapted to swing, is designated herein by the broken line 16.

The wings 13-18 may be of any desired section and may be, if desired, either in-A ternally or externally braced. As indicated in Figs. 1. and 2 the wings 13 herein shown 95 are provided each with a forward wing beam 17, an intermediate wing beam 18 and a rear wing beam 19, the latter or rear wing beam 19 being preferably coincident or nearly coincident with the leading edge of Fig. 1, being retracted; 55

c the aileron 14 mounted therebehind. In addition to said beams 17 and 18, the wings 13 may comprise any suitable number of ribs (not shown) and any suitable covering such as metal, fabric or veneer.

Each wing 13, at or near its leading edge, and on the top exterior surface of its nose, is provided with a nose pieceor nose flap 20. Each said Hap is preferably transversely divided intermediately of its ends, whereby an outer flap section 21 and an inner flap section 22 is formed. Preferably the outer flap section 21, in each instance, has an overall length substantially equal to that of the aileron 14 mounted therebehind and at the trailing edge of the wing.

The flaps 2() of the wings 13-13 are movable in a fore and aft direction relatively to the nose of the wing. When extended, said aps provide at the leading edge of the supporting surface a longitudinal slot extending throughout substantially the full span of each wing. When retracted, said flaps lie directly upon the wing nose and in cross-section they are shaped to conform xsubstantially to that portion of the wing lnose against which they respectively bear.

The means for extending and retracting the nose Haps 20 comprises a plurality of push rods 23, each of which at its forward end is rigidly fastened to one or the other of the nose flap sections 21 and 22. Said push rods 23 are slidable in a fore and aft direction and each at its rear end is fastened to the rear wing beam by a spring 24. As guides for the push rods, the beams 17 and 18 of the wing each khave opening 25 formed therein thru which the push rods extend. Two or more push rods should be provided for each Hap section.

Upon reference to Fig. 2 it will be noted that the inner nose Hap sections 22 are in no way fastened to or dependent upon the ailerons 14-14 for their movement. The outer Hap sections 21, however, are. For this reason the push rods fastened to the outer flap sections each have formed therein, intermediately of their ends suitable slots 26 within which pins 27 are fitted. These pins 27 are carried at the forward end of rods 28 pivotedas at 29 to arms 30 extending off from Athe respective ailerons 14. Vith the ailerons in neutral position the pins 27 engage in the slots 26 at the forward end of said slots, and by their engagement in the manner indicated exert on the' push rods 23 sufficient pressure to slide them, i. e., the push rods in a forward direction should the ailerons 14 be deflected downwardly thru the operation of the aileron control. As the nose flap sections 21 are in each instance carried by the push rods 23 having slots 26 formed therein, obvi- -ous1y, as said rods 23 are pushed forwardly the ap secticns 21 correspondingly move to provide at the nose of the wing a wing slot of the desired form. Upon the return of the aileron 14 to neutral position after having been deflected downwardly, the springs 24 will.retract the push rods and hence the nose Hap sections 21.

Should the ailerons 14-14 be deiected upwardly, the nose flap sections 21 instead of being extended to open the wing slots will remain in fixed position, as nomeans is provided for exerting a forward pressure on the rods 23 where an upward deflection of the ailerons is established. The pins 27, under the above conditions instead of exert; ing a forward pressure on the rods 23 would merely slide in ajbackward direction along thev slot length and will e'ect in no way the operation of the nose flap sections 21. It will be seen, therefore, that the nose flap sections 2l operate in conjunction with the ailerons 14 when the latter are deflected downwardly, but that they remain inactive or inoperative under circumstances requiring an upward deiiection thereof. Any suit-- able means, such as a control stick 31 and control connections 32 carried over pulleys 33, may be provided for simultaneous, tho opposite, movement of the ailerons.

Since it is a well-known fact that an open slot at or near the leading edge of an aeroplane wing adds greatly to the lift thereof, I have provided herein other and further means for extending and retracting simultaneously all of the nose flap sections 21 and 22. Such means comprises a lever 34 mounted in convenient proximity to the pilots seat. Said lever 34 is pivoted as at 35 and has extending off therefrom an arm 3-6 to which is fastened a rod 37. This rod 37 at its opposite end is pivotally fastened to an arm' 38 in turn fastened to a cross-shaft 39 extending within and throughout substantially the full length of both wings. Said shaft 39 is provided at intervals with arms4 40 each of which, at its outer end, is adapted to bear on a lug 41 extending off from the push rods 23. By this means, thru the movement of said lever 34, each push rod 23 is moved in a forward direction to extend the nose flap sections simultaneously. Whether or not said nose flap sections are in extended position the operation of the ailerons14 remains the same.

In Fig. 5 of the drawings it will be noted that an open slot 42 is provided in each wing` at the leading edge of the aileron the moment said aileron is defie'cted upwardly. This slot 42 is produced by the wing trailing edge and aileron leading edge formation. Its function is that of an air passage by means lof which a cert-ain amount of air is let thru the wing to decrease, when the aileron is defiected upwardly, the lift of the wing, such decrease in lift being even further instrumental in producing the desired lll) . the high side righting couple which is obtained by the nose slot in combination with the oppositely acting ailerons.

An aeroplane having its supporting surfaces and ailerons constructed as herein set forth, canbe controlled at practically all speeds and with the wings or supporting surface positioned at angles approaching the stalling angle. The' open nose slot plus the downward aileron at the low side of the machine, together with the closed nose slot, open aileron slot and upturned aileron at of the machine, are the governing factors which give to the machine the desired righting couple.

While I have described by invention in detail in its present preferred embodiment,

it will be obvious to those skilled in the' art after understanding my invention, that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit or scope thereof. I aim in the appended claims to cover all such modifications and changes.

What l claim is:

l. The combination, in an aeroplane, of a supporting surface, a nose flap mounted at each outer end of said supporting surface, a trailing edge aileron mounted at each outer endof said supporting surface, said ailerons being so related to said supporting surface as to provide therein, should either aileron be deected upwardly, an open slot at or near the leading edge of said upwardly de- Hected aileron, a control device operable to simultaneously oppositely deflect said ailerons, and a connection extending between each said aileron and its associated nose flap to shift the latter upon a downward deflection of either aileron to produce thereby within the supporting surface at or near the leading edge thereof an open slot.

2. The combination, in an aeroplane, of a supporting surface, a nose flap carried by said supporting surface, said nose Hap being divided intermediately of its ends to provide respectively one or more intermediate nose iiap sections and at each outer end of'said supporting surface an outer nose flap section, a trailing edge aileron mounted at each outer end of said supporting surface, a control device operable to simultaneously oppositely deflect said ailerons, a connection extending between each said aileron and its associated 'outer nose ap section whereby upon a downward deflection of either aileron the corresponding outer nose flap section is shifted independently. of the intermediate section thereof to provide at or near the leading edge of and at the outer end of said supporting surface an openslot of a lengthu corresponding to that of the shifted nose flap section, and a separate means operable to simultr 'leously shift the total number of nose flap sections independentlyv of all ailevto open a forward air slot, a rear wing ron movement to provide at or near the leading edge of said supporting surface an open slot having an overall length equal to the overall length of said nose flap.

8. The combination, in an aeroplane, of a supporting surface, a nose flap carried by said supporting surface, said nose flap being divided intermediately of its ends to provide respectively one or more intermediate nose flap sections and at each outer end of said supporting surface an outer nose flap section, a trailing edge flap mounted at each outer end of said siipporting surface, said trailing edge flaps being so related to said supporting surface as to provide therein, should either trailing edge flap be deflected upwardly, an open slot at or near the leading edge of said upwardly deflected trailing edge flap, a control device operable to simultaneously oppositely deect said trailing edge flaps, a connection extending between each said trailing edge flap and its associated outer nose Aflap section whereby upon a downward deflection of either trailing edge flap the corresponding outer nose flap section is shifted independentlyA of the intermediate sections thereof to provide at or near the leading edge of and at the outer ends of said supporting surface an open slotof a length corresponding to that of the shifted nose {iap section, and a separate means operable to simultaneously shift'the total number of nose flap sections independently of all movement of said trailing edge liaps to provide at or near the leading edge of said supporting surface an open slot having an over-all length equal to the over-all length of said nose flap.

4. An aeroplane wing comprising a main -aerofoil, a nose iiapcarried by said main aerofoil adapted when in forward position flap adapted when raised to open a rear air slot through said wing, means for raising said rear wing flap and opening the rear air slot and means for moving the nose Hap forward and opening the forward air slot.

5. ln an aeroplane a fuselage; a pair of wings positioned one on each side of the fuselage, each of the wings comprising a main supporting section, a nose flap and a rear wing flap; means for operating the nose fiap of one wing and the wing flap of the other wingto open a forward slot in the first named wing and a rear slot in the rear slot. in the rst named wing and the forward slot of the second named wing closed.

6. ln an aeroplane; a fuselage; wings attached to said fuselage and extending laterally on both sides thereof; forward nose iiaps carried by and extending substantially throughout the width of said wings and adapted to be operated to open a forward psecondnamed wing while maintaining the Lem/,eee

air passage through said Wings, the Hep for each Wing being divided into e piumiity of sections; e rem` Wing flap; and Ineens for operating simultaneously the rear Wing i'iep of one of the Wings and a portion ony of the sections of the forward nose Hap of said Wing.

In testimony whereof hereunto afx my signature. 

